Apparatus for separating liquid from liquid entrained gas



Jan. 20, 1970 w. E. HORTON ET Al- 3,490,210

APPARATUS FOR SEPARATIN-G LIQUID FROM LIQUID ENTRAINED GAS Original Filed Jan. 23, 196'? INVENTORS Wulluce Elvin Horton a BY Jim Ross Dixon United States Patent 3,490,210 APPARATUS FOR SEPARATING LIQUID FROM LIQUID ENTRAINED .GAS

Wallace Elvin Horton, Carrollton', aml Jim Ross Dixon,

Grand Prairie, Tex., assignors to Peerless Manufacturing Company, Dallas, Tex., a corporation of Texas Continuation of application Ser. No. 610,869, Jan. 23, 1967. This application Jan. 30, 1968, Ser. No. 701,788

Int. Cl. B01d 45/10 US. Cl. 55-440 2 Claims ABSTRACT OF THE DISCLOSURE A vane assembly used in an apparatus for separating liquid from a gas. The vane elements aife in the form of a zigzag configuration with an integral spac'er element shaped in a. U configuration. The spacer element spans an apex in the zigzag configuration. The spacer also forms an apex spaced from the vane element apex. The spacer apex contacts an adjacent vane element at an apex. Each of the vane elements in the apparatus are unifogml y spaced in zigzag alignment and each of the spacers are in apex alignment. This facilitates easy removal of the vane elements for replacement and for cleaning while maintaining the critical spaced relationship between vane elements.

This application is a continuation of application Ser. No. 610,869, now abandoned.

This invention relates to an apparatus for the separation of liquid from a gas entering a chamber having vane elements. More particularly the invention relates to a vane element having an integral spacer.

Apparatus for separation of liquid from liquid entrained gas consists of a chamber with a corrugated bafile or zigzag vane element inserted within the chamber. The elements may have pockets throughout the vane elements which the gas strikes and withholds moisture or liquid. The moisture or liquid then drops vertically from the horizontal gas stream and is removed from a drip pan at the bottom of the chamber. The spacing between adjacent vane elements in the assembly is critical. Variation from optimum spacing by as little as 0.015 inch can substantially reduce the capability of the vane element assembly. The conventional method of assembling the spacer vane elements is to punch two holes in each end of the vane andstring the vanes on four tie rods. Tubular spacers are slipped over the tie rods between each vane element to maintaingthe desired spacing of the vanes. When the required number of vanes have been assembled on the tie rods, nuts are tightened on the threaded tie rod ends to compress the spacer assembly made up of the plurality of vanes. In many types of installations this particular assembly arrangement with tie rods and tubular spacers is not satisfactory. For example, in some installations provisions must be made for periodic removal of the vanes from the units-for inspection, cleaning and replacement. One solutionadvanced has been to assemble two or three vanes with tie rods and tubular spacers into a bundle arrangement assembly. A number of bundles are then used to make upa complete spacer assembly. This approach, however, has also been unsatisfactory because proper spacing between adjacent bundles depends on the combined thickness of the abutting tie rod nuts being the same as the length of the tubular spacers. Controlled nut thickness is achieved only by the additional expense of special manufacture and inspection of the nuts. A further disadvantage of the vane bundle assembly arrangement is the horizontal shifting which can occur between adjacent bundles. This shifting results in incorrect spacing between the outside vanes of adjacent bundles, even though the spacing provided by the tie rod ice nuts is correct. A further disadvantage is the necessity of a complete breakdown and reassembly of the vane bundles if inspection or cleaning of individual vane elements 1s required.

In many installations the vertical height of the vane assembly requires support and stiffening at intermediate points along the vane element height. The support is necessary because of a tendency of vibration resulting from gas flow through the vane length. The vibration produces major failure'o'f the vane assembly. While additional support can be provided by extra tie rods and tubular spacers at intermediate points, this support is achieved only at the expense of reducing the functional capability of the vane assembly. The tie rods and tubular spacers horizontally pass through the vanes and are in line with the pockets in which the liquid drains. The tie rods and tubular spacers along the intermediate points of the vane assembly create a break in the pocket drain path for the liquid. Liquid in the upper portion of the spacer assembly draining in the pockets which are aligned with the tie rod reach a break point in the drain path caused by the tie rod and spacer passing through and are deflected back into the gas stream, rather than continuing to the liquid collection chamber or pan thereby reducing the efficiency of the spacer assembly.

The present invention overcomes these problems by allowing each vane element to be individually removed for cleaning or replacement without disassembly of the entire unit. The invention maintains the critical spacing at all times between adjacent vanes and prevents any shifting of the vanes. An intermediate support is also provided which does ot require a break in the liquid drain path along the chamber.

We provide an apparatus for the separation of liquid from a gas entering a chamber having vane elements wherein the improvement comprises, a vane element in the form of a zigzag configuration having a plurality of apexes formed by alternating angles, the vane element having an integral spacer element between an apex formed by an angle of the vane element, the spacer element shaped in a U configuration forming a spacer apex removed from the vane apex, the spacer apex formed by two spacer sides, each spacer side parallel to the opposed vane side, each spacer side extending from a spacer leg having a spacer foot attached to the vane element.

We preferably provide a plurality of vane elements within the chamber. Each vane element is in the form of a zigzag configuration having a plurality of apexes formed by alternating angles. Each element has a plurality of uniform fins extending toward the gas flow from each apex and forming a pocket to stop the liquid within the gas. Each vane element has a plurality of integral spacer elements spanning apeXes formed by angles. The spacer elements are shaped in a U configuration forming a spacer apex which is removed or spaced from the vane element apex. The spacer apex is formed by two sides. Each spacer side is parallel to the opposed vane side. All the spacers are positioned in apex alignment between the vane ele ments and each of the vane elements are uniformly spaced in zigzag alignment. The apex of each spacer is in contact with the apex of a vane element spaced from the vane element to which the spacer is integral.

Other details, objects and advantages of the invention will become apparent as the following description of the present preferred embodiment proceeds.

.In the accompanying drawings I have shown a present preferred embodiment of the invention and have illustrated a present preferred method of practicing the same in which:

FIGURE 1 is a top schematic view of a vane spacer assembly employing a plurality of vane elements; and

FIGURE 2 is a partial showing of a plan view of a plurality of vane elements having integral spacers separating the vane elements.

'FIGURE 1 shows a schematic top portion of an apparatus for separation of liquid from liquid entrained gas. The gas enters inlet 12 of chamber 14, passes through vane assembly 16 comprised of vane elements 18 and exits through port 20. The gas is separated into horizontal ribbons along the van elements 18. The gas strikes walls 22 and 24 of vane element 18 and pockets 26 and 28. The pockets 26 and 28 are in the form of uniform fins extending toward the inlet port 12. The fins 26 and 28 entrap th liquid from the gas which passes. The liquid drops down the vertical height to the bottom of the chamber 14 and is collected by a suitable means, not shown.

FIGURE 2 shows a plurality of vane elements 30 which are inserted within a chamber similar to that in FIGURE 1. The assembly 30 is comprised of individual vane elements 32, 34 and 36. Each vane element 32, 34 and 36 is in the form of a zigzag configuration having a plurality of apexes '38, 40, 42, 44, 46 and 48, respectively. Each element 32, 34 and 36 has a plurality of fins 50, 52 and 54, respectively, extending toward the gas flow 56 from each apex 38, 40, 42, 44, 46 and 48. Elements 32 and 34 have a plurality of integral spacer elements 56, 58 and 60, 62, respectively. Each spacer element, for example, 58 has a pair of sides 64 and 66 forming an apex 68 which is re moved from vane element apex 40. The spacer element 58 has a pair of legs 70 and 72 each having feet 74 and 76, respectively, which are welded to vane element 32. To facilitate proper indexing of the spacer, an extending 78 from the foot 76 engages apex 38 of vane element 32. The apex 68 of the spacer engages the apex 44 of vane element 34 and spacer element 62 integral to vane element 34 engaging in non attached contact with apex 48 of vane element 36. Spacer elements 58 and 62 have their vertexes in alignment and the vane elements 32, 34 and 36 are uniformly spaced. The zigzag configuration of each vane element 32, 34 and 36 forms a plurality of apexes by alternating acute and obtuse angles. The spacer elements 58 and 62 span the apexes 40 and 44 of obtuse angles in vane elements 32 and 34, respectively, and they engage the apexes 44 and 48 formed by obtuse angles in vane elements 34 and 36 respectively. The foot extension 78 engages the apex 38 of an acute angle. The purpose of the foot extension is for use in welding indicated to 80 of the spacer element 58 to the vane element 32.

We claim:

1. An apparatus for the separation of liquid from a gas entering a chamber which comprises:

(a) a vane assembly of at least a spaced apart pair of identical and parallel first and second vane elements in the form of a zigzag configuration having a plurality of apexes formed by alternating angles extending in opposite directions with the angles of the first vane element substantially aligned with like angles of the second vane element for trapping liquid within the gas as the gas strikes the vane elements;

(b) a fin extending toward the gas input from each apex of the vane elements and forming a pocket to trap additional liquid within the gas; and

(c) a plurality of spacer means at the same level for spacing the vane elements having:

(1) a pair of sides which converge and conform to the shape" of the second vane element and abut the second vane element over a substantial portion of the length of the second vane element between two adjacent angles extending in the same direction with one angle extending in the opposite direction between them, the sides span an apexof the first vane element;

(2) a pair of substantially parallel legs forming angles with the sides of the spacer means and extending toward the first vane element; and

(3) a pair of feet extending from the legs and in the opposite direction of each other, each foot conforms and is attached to only the first vane element.

2. An apparatus for the separation of liquid from a gas entering a chamber which comprises:

(a) a vane assembly of at least a spaced apart pair of identical first'and second vane elements in the form of a zigzag configuration having a plurality of apexes formgd by alternating angles extending in opposite directions with the angles of the first vane element substantially aligned with like angles of the second vane elgment; and

(b) a spacer means for spacing the vane elements having:

(l) a pair of sides which converge and conform to the shape of the second vane element and abut the second vane element over a substantial portion of the length of the second vane element between two adjacent apexes extending in the same direction with one apex extending in the opposite direction between them, the sides span and are spaced from an apex of the first vane element;

(2) a pair of substantially parallel legs forming angles with the sides of the spacer means and extending toward the first vane element; and

(3) a pair of feet extending from the legs, each foot is attached to only the first vane element.

References Cited UNITED STATES PATENTS 10/1933 Sillers 55-440 6/ 1942 Greulich.

6/1253 Smith 55-440 5/1957 Lake 55-440 995,107 6/1965 Great Britain.

HARRY B. THORNTON, Primary Examiner B. NOZICK, Assistant Examiner 

